PORTLAND, Ore. — Had you stopped the match after 10 minutes, you would have never guessed Colorado would lose 3-0. They were clearly the better side, putting three shots toward Donovan Ricketts during a start that hinted the host’s 14-game unbeaten run was in serious jeopardy.

But as is so often the case in this sport, one moment changed everything. That moment came in the 12th minute when a Rodney Wallace cross was hammered home by Frédéric Piquionne. Eighty minutes later, after Will and Ryan Johnson goals, the Timbers had a 3-0 victory, the type of decisive result many would have predicted before the opening kickoff.

Winless in four, Colorado have started to fade after a May push cast them as dark horse playoff contenders. Yet the Rapids may be falling victim to the one thing that undoes so many upstarts: Respect. After catching some by surprise during their strong start, Colorado lost the ability to sneak up on anyone. The result’s been a fall to earth.

It’s a testament to Portland’s staying power that they’ve avoided the same fate. After all, the Timbers were one of two teams to finish below the Rapids in last year’s Western Conference standings. They’re just as susceptible to the surprise team paradox as Colorado.

Of course, Portland is a much changed team from last year, with the value of all so many of their new parts on display Sunday. Confident goalkeeping from Ricketts helped weather the early storm while enabling decisive play from newly acquired Pa-Modou Kah. Will Johnson’s role as a fulcrum in midfield was evident as the Timbers established themselves after Piquionne’s goal, while Diego Valeri’s skill continues to be crucial as a focal point linking the attack.

Then there are the holdovers – players who’ve almost across-the-board improved this season. Back playing fullback, Jack Jewsbury has been a needed insurance policy for a depleted central defense. Diego Chara has gone a long way to justifying his Designated Player spot, while Darlington Nagbe continues to tap into on his seemingly unlimited potential. All three continued their strong seasons on Sunday.

And of course, there’s Rodney Wallace. The Costa Rican became a topic of conversation recently when he failed to make MLS’s All-Star Ballot, a testament to the suddenly deep Portland squad. On Sunday, the left-sider provided his counter point, recording the first assist on all three Timbers goals.

The result leaves the Timbers even on points with Real Salt Lake at the top of the Western Conference. A proclivity for draws technically puts Portland in second place, but with only one loss, they’re also the most difficult team in the league to beat.

Now 107 days and 15 matches without a loss, Caleb Porter’s men have gone from answering questions to posing their inquiries of their own: Who will be the next team to beat the Portland Timbers?

Between injuries, international call ups and a suspension, the LA Galaxy could be without as many as 10 players this weekend.

Ola Kamara, Romain Alessandrini and Giovani dos Santos are among the notable names likely to be absent for Saturday’s match against the Vancouver Whitecaps, but seven more players could be left unavailable for Sigi Schmid’s squad.

Kamara was the latest player to be named to his respective national team, with the striker being called up to Norway on Monday.

Meanwhile, both Giovani and Jonathan dos Santos have earned call ups to Mexico, and Emrah Klimenta has been selected by Montenegro for its next friendlies against Cyprus and Turkey.

Both Dos Santos brothers are battling injuries of their own, so they may not feature for El Tri, but that won’t necessarily help the Galaxy either as they are kept sidelined.

Of the ten players possibly missing the Whitecaps match, five of them (Michael Ciani, Cole, Gio dos Santos, J. dos Santos and Kamara) started in the Galaxy’s last game — a 2-1 loss to New York City FC.

Eden Hazard has long been a Madrid target, and with the Belgium international seemingly more and more interested by a move away from Stamford Bridge, the veteran attacker could see himself join Real after the World Cup in Russia.

According to Spanish outlet Diario Gol, Real could secure a move for Hazard this summer, while sending young attacker Marco Asensio to Chelsea.

While hypothetical at this point, the move makes sense for both clubs, particularly from a Blues perspective as they look for young attacking players.

The 22-year-old Asensio has been seeking regular minutes at Madrid, and with Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale regularly included in the starting squad, that has been nearly impossible for the Spanish international.

Meanwhile, Real would be gaining another incredibly talented attacking piece to go along with Ronaldo and Bale, although the latter has been linked with a move away from the Santiago Bernabeu for some time.

Real has also been strongly linked with a move for Paris Saint-Germain winger Neymar, who has spent less than a season in France.

It’s a ways away from happening, but a front three of Hazard, Ronaldo and Neymar would certainly make El Clasico even more intriguing than usual, with Real facing off against a Barcelona squad that currently boasts Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho.

Striker Andrija Novakovich earned his first call up on Sunday when U.S. manager Dave Sarachan named the Telstar player in his squad, which will play the South American side on March 27 in Cary, North Carolina.

The 21-year-old forward has been nothing short of brilliant in his first season with the Dutch second-division club, scoring 18 league goals for Telstar — who sit fourth in the Eerste Divisie.

“It’s a good feeling to get the call-up and hopefully it will be a very good experience,” Novakovich said. “They [the U.S. national team] sent the club and myself an email saying that I was on the preliminary roster and we were just waiting, and then this week I got another email saying I was on the final roster.

“I called my Mum right away and she’s proud, she’s happy.

“I’m just there for the experience — of course I want to play, of course I want to get the opportunity and hopefully that will happen, It’s an honour to be called up and I’m very proud and very happy.”

Novakovich, a Wisconsin native, is currently on loan at Telstar from English Championship side Reading.

The young USMNT player moved to England back in 2014 to join Reading’s academy, despite originally planning on playing for Marquette University following high school.

Despite this being his first senior-team call up, Novakovich is familiar with the U.S. national team setup. Novakovich has previously represented the Under-17, U-18 and U-20 national teams.

The Barcelona star has played a significant role for the Albiceleste since debuting for Argentina back in 2005, and even helped guide the South American power to the 2014 World Cup final, however, harsh criticism from local media could push Messi and many of his teammates towards not returning to the national team.

This wouldn’t be the first time Messi has contemplated international retirement, though.

Following the 2016 Copa America Centenario final — which resulted in a Chilean victory over Messi’s Argentina — the Blaugrana attacker announced his retirement from the Albiceleste. While he has since returned to the international scene, it appears Messi is once again considering a halt from representing Argentina.

“It’s just the feeling that this group of players has. It seems that having reached three straight finals didn’t mean anything,” Messi told La Cornisa TV. “Obviously, we depend on results and unfortunately, we reached three finals and we didn’t win them.

“A lot was said about us. The criticisms hurt back then. But the demand is going to be there for this group to get it done. We think that if we don’t do it, we are going to get a lot more [criticism] and we are not going to have another possibility.”

Argentina has fallen in three consecutive major finals dating back to 2014, including two Copa America competitions and the World Cup.

Messi says these shortcomings have weighed heavily on him, and that winning a World Cup is still the one goal that has left him hungry.

“I’ve cried many times for lost finals,” the Barca forward said. “I cried for not being able to fulfill the dream of our nation. My desire is the same as every Argentine, which is to lift the World Cup.”

He continued: “To win a World Cup is not easy. It doesn’t happen often. The last time we did things well but due to minor details we didn’t get it done. We are very enthusiastic and eager to lift the cup for our country. I hope God helps us and it happens.”

Messi has scored 61 international goals in his international career for Argentina, the most of any player from his native country.